Advisory
Owners of Land & Buildings
I advise owners of improved and unimproved land on repositioning, entitlement strategy, and the path from dormant site to productive asset.
Attorney · Executive · Developer — Est. Hartford, Connecticut
Counsel with the judgement of counsel, the eye of a developer.
For over thirty-five years I have guided the acquisition, financing, and redevelopment of commercial real estate — as chief legal officer, as senior executive, and, since 2006, as founder and principal of Development Resources LLC.
- 35+
- Years in practice
- 100+
- Properties overseen
- 2
- Bar admissions
Donald S. Gershman
Founder & Principal
01 — Biography
A career spent where the deed, the deal, and the dirt all meet.
I am a real estate developer, a business executive, and an attorney. I founded Development Resources to pursue the opportunistic development and redevelopment of office and commercial value-added and brownfield sites — personally involved in the site selection, design, underwriting, and entitlements of every project, and in the negotiations with my partners, investors, and lenders.
I began my career at Schatz & Schatz, Ribicoff & Kotkin in Hartford, Connecticut, specializing in the acquisition, disposition, development, leasing, and financing of commercial real estate. I then spent twenty years as a senior officer of Konover Properties Corporation — first as General Counsel, building and leading its legal department, then as Executive Vice President, negotiating the acquisition of most of the company's office portfolio and directing its highest-profile developments.
"Opportunity in real estate is rarely advertised. It is underwritten, entitled, and negotiated into being."
BA, Economics — Tufts University
JD — Boston College Law School
The Law
I have served as chief legal officer and deal lawyer — handling acquisitions, dispositions, leasing, and financing of commercial real estate for banks, retailers, municipalities, and developers.
The Enterprise
I spent twenty years as a senior officer of a vertically integrated development company with over 100 properties across 20 states — as EVP, General Counsel, and government relations officer.
The Academy
For more than a decade I have been adjunct faculty at the University of Connecticut School of Law, teaching Real Estate Transactions to the next generation of practitioners.
02 — The Executive Career
Three chapters, thirty-five years in the making.
Twenty Years
Konover Properties Corporation
General Counsel → Executive Vice President
100+ Properties · 20 States
03 — The Consulting Practice
Private counsel for consequential property matters.
I consult personally with owners of improved and unimproved land — and with their lenders and counsel — drawing on thirty-five years spent on both sides of the table.
Advisory
Lenders & Their Counsel
I bring a developer's eye to lenders and their counsel on distressed or complex commercial collateral — what it is, what it could be, and what it takes.
Advisory
Partners & Investors
I structure and negotiate for partners and investors in office, commercial, and multifamily ventures — personally, never delegated.
35+
Years at the table
1
Principal — always
CT & FL
Bar admissions
20+
States of prior portfolio
04 — Selected Undertakings
Sites others passed on, made to work.
Drawn from the acquisition, development, and consulting record of Development Resources LLC, the company I founded in 2006.
Brownfield Remediation
Bloomfield, Connecticut
470 Cottage Grove Road
A contaminated former industrial site remediated and redeveloped into a LEED-certified, Class A medical office building.
Acquisition & Lease
State Capitol CBD
200,000 SF Office Building
Acquisition, with a partner, of an architecturally significant office building and adjacent development parcels — and negotiation of a full-building lease with the state government.
Condominium Development
79-Unit Mid-Rise Community
Special development district approval and wetlands mitigation, achieving a density of 20 units per acre in an established neighborhood.
Distressed Acquisition
500,000 SF Retail Mall
Acquisition of a distressed mall through discounted debt negotiated from a national lender, with a complex operating agreement with the former project owner.
Mixed-Use Site
45-Acre Waterfront Site
Site development now home to a 100,000 SF Class A office building and a regional magnet middle school.
A selection of my undertakings — not the complete record. Photographs: 470 Cottage Grove Road, Bloomfield; Hartford, Connecticut skyline.
05 — Podium & Classroom
Where the profession comes to listen.
For more than a decade I have taught and spoken before the industry's lawyers, lenders, and students — on the transactions I have spent a career closing.
2012 — Present
UConn School of Law
Adjunct Faculty
I teach Real Estate Transactions (LAW 7723) — the acquisition, financing, leasing, and development of commercial property, drawn from my own deals.
Annual Programs
ICSC Law Conferences
Speaker
I speak at the International Council of Shopping Centers' annual law conferences — the national gathering of retail real estate counsel.
Recurring Programs
REFA of Connecticut
Program Speaker
I speak regularly at Real Estate Finance Association of Connecticut industry programs on the financing and structuring of commercial real estate.
Ongoing
Connecticut Bar Association
Speaker · Real Property Section
I present at Connecticut Bar Association industry programs and serve on the Executive Committee of the Real Property Section.
06 — Academic & Professional Life
Standing in the profession, and beyond it.
I am a member of the bar in two states, a teacher of future real estate lawyers, and a director of civic and charitable institutions throughout Connecticut.
07 — Consultation
Begin the conversation.
For development partnerships, commercial real estate matters, speaking engagements, or academic enquiries — write to me directly, and I will reply personally.
Direct Email
consult@DonaldGershman.comTelephone
(419) 324-4391Office
4 Ranger Lane, West Hartford, CT 06117 — by appointment
Response
I review every enquiry personally and reply within two business days.